Every afternoon, so many company owners see their employees hunched over in front of their computer screens, exhausted and fiercely chugging coffee just to get a much-needed energy boost. They may have had trouble sleeping the night before, or they always feel tired after lunch. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if there was a way they could feel much more lively without having to take multiple trips to fill up their coffee mug? Well, there is: A daily power nap.
Allowing employees to nap at work might seem like every company owner’s worst nightmare. However, I have seen the benefits of allowing our team to nap during each workday. Here are several reasons why all business owners should join our Pro-Nap Movement that is all about rejecting counterproductive, nap-shaming corporate BS and reclaiming what should have always been yours in the first place: your vitality:
Naps Provide the Productivity Boost Your Team Needs
Research shows that 20-minute naps can make you more productive at work. Naps beat coffee hands down, because our bodies are wired to nap. In this study, subjects took periodic tests during a workday. Without a nap, their test performances went down as the day went on. But, when the test subjects took short naps, the results got better. Napping helped improve alertness, workplace productivity, and the ability to process information.
Pre-Brainstorming Session Naps Can Help Solve Issues
When your team members are sleep deprived, it can negatively impact their problem-solving skills and creativity. This can be detrimental if your team is trying to brainstorm a solution for a client’s issue or if they are all struggling to come up with the perfect marketing strategy for a new launch. If you allow your employees to take a quick 20- to 30-minute nap before a brainstorming session, it can give them the creativity boost and jolt in alertness they need to think of the best way to solve these problems. It’s like having a second morning in the afternoon in terms of productivity.
Naps Can Help Keep Sickness at Bay
If your team members are out sick, it can really hurt your business in terms of meeting project deadlines and optimizing work output. That said, a daily nap can be key for improving their immune systems. If one doesn’t get enough sleep, they will have an overactive sympathetic nervous system (responsible for the fight-or-flight state). This triggers an increase in the stress-hormone (cortisol) and this puts a strain on the body, which causes all types of health issues. Immune systems need sleep to fight off diseases and ward off infections. With more sleep, you may notice that you don’t get sick as often as when you’re not getting enough sleep. Daily naps can help achieve this.
Allowing Daily Naps Can Amplify Your Company’s Overall Success
If your employees are exhausted, they won’t be able to work to the best of their ability. And if they aren’t maximizing work output, that means they aren’t bringing your company to the level of success it could potentially be at. For example, if your employees are super tired while doing sales outreach emails, they may not be able to hit as many leads as they would if they were energized from a quick power nap. This could result in your business not reaching its sales goals for the month. Thus, if your team members are tired, allow them to take a nap before starting their sales outreach initiatives.
To Wrap It All Up
We believe that great sleep is the non-negotiable foundation you need to create your best life. It’s impossible to unlock your full potential if you’re not getting an afternoon nap every day. Naps can help your enterprise thrive, as they can be key for providing the productivity boost your employees need when the afternoon slump hits. Also, naps can help your company save money, as well as improve the success of brainstorming sessions. On top of this, daily naps can help prevent your employees from getting sick, which in turn will keep your business from getting behind on projects.
Mark Zhang is the CEO & founder of Manta Sleep mask, the only mask designed, constructed, and optimized for deepest-possible sleep in any environment. Manta Sleep masks provide 100% blackout for maximized sleep quality — so users feel 100%, all the time. A leader of the pro-napping movement, Mark educates others on why an afternoon nap is crucial for unlocking one’s full potential, why business owners should allow their team members to nap each day, tips to improve sleep quality, and much more. www.mantasleep.com.
Power nap stock photo by Mckyartstudio/Shutterstock
